Honest ROI Check
by Savvy Business Profits
A free 2-minute check for business owners. Answer a few simple questions and get a straight answer before you spend: buy, not yet, or don't buy.
This example is a plumbing business: 10 hours a week on quotes, looking at a $199-a-month tool. Change anything below and it becomes your result.
Pick ONE job the tool would take over. Not the whole business — one job.
Straight from the pricing page, or the quote you were given.
Fact
The price on the website is usually only a fraction of what year one really costs. Training your staff, setting it up, fixing early mistakes — it adds up to roughly 3 times the sticker price. We count that. Most calculators don't. (Industry cost analysis, 2026)
Be honest — nobody's watching. Every "No" here lowers your savings in the picture below, because that's what happens in real life to unprepared businesses.
1. Is this job written down, step by step — not just in someone's head?
2. Do you know what this job costs you today — the hours, the dollars, the mistakes?
Fact
Businesses that measured first got their money back in about 3 months. Businesses that didn't took over 14 months. (Bain & Company)
3. Has the seller shown you a real business YOUR size where it worked?
Sellers say "all of it". Real results say a third to a half is a good outcome — so this control stops at 50%.
30% of the job handled by the tool
Your savings estimate (updates as you answer)
— fill in Steps 1 and 2 —
Each bar is one month after you buy. Green bar = the tool has saved you more than it's cost you so far. Red bar = you're still out of pocket. This picture redraws itself every time you change an answer above.
After 18 months you'd be…
—
Your verdict
What it saves you
wages back, per year
What it really costs
first year, hidden costs included
When you're in front
the first green bar
If it goes well
If it goes like most projects
Fact
95% of business AI projects show no measurable return within six months. The worst case isn't rare — it's normal. Only buy if you could wear it. (MIT, "The GenAI Divide", 2025)
Savings = hours per week × hourly cost × 52 weeks × the % you chose in Step 4. Every "No" in Step 3 cuts this by a quarter, because unprepared businesses get less out of tools.
Real cost = the monthly price × 3 (hidden costs), every month, plus the setup fee up front.
In front = the first month your total savings are bigger than your total costs. If that never happens, we say never.
Best case = costs at 2.5× sticker, full savings. Worst case = costs at 5× sticker, half savings.
No affiliate links. Nothing for sale on this page. It exists because someone should be allowed to tell you "not yet".
If this check made you pause, the tool-readiness notes show you exactly what to sort out first — so any tool you do buy actually saves time, makes the business less busy, and earns its cost. Leave your details and download them free.